Food For All in Vraj 2017 (2 min video)Parasuram das: Dear…
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Food For All in Vraj 2017 (2 min video)
Parasuram das: Dear Devotees this Kartik an international group of devotees was fortunate to travel the 12 forests of Vraj. A strong kirtan party with members of the “Harinam Ruci” chanted up to 8 hours a day. 38,000 small books were distributed, this small book Raja Vidya was the same book that the devotees flooded the Allahabad Kamba Mela during Srila Prabhupada’s physical presence. Tonnes and tonnes of Krishna prasad were distributed. Books, Prasad and Harinam, Jai Srila Prabhupada.
Watch it here: https://goo.gl/quYGUd

To go Up you have to go Down! Sivarama Swami: In cities there…
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To go Up you have to go Down!
Sivarama Swami: In cities there are hundred-story buildings being built. But one thing that small and tall buildings have in common are foundations. In other words, before going up, you have to go down. It may appear contradictory, but that’s construction. And the further up you want to go — the taller the building you want to build, the deeper has to be your foundation.
Foundations are what hold up the building and its the same thing in life. If you have a goal, you have to set a foundation for it. If you want to be a surgeon, you have to invest in years of study and medical training. If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, you need to apprentice under one, learn the ropes and be patient.
These are the foundation.
So to go up to where we want to go, we always have to go down. And going down takes us to places that don’t always resemble our goal. Still,
that’s the foundation. And it’s the same with Yoga and with self-awareness. To really connect with the Supreme, we have to dutifully practice self-discipline, lead a regulated life and systematically study the truths of transcendence. These are foundations that will help us go up and connect with divinity.

To try to go up, without going down, is a waste of time. And to make an alternative to the authorised process… well its like building a house and
ignoring standard construction practices that are based on standard laws of physics and math. The result will be that the building will collapse and the builder will have wasted his time and money.

So remember, whatever your goal or goals in life are including selfawareness you need to do the standard, accepted methods of preparation.

Before going up, you have to go down.

– HH Sivarama Swami

Our family business! Madhava Mohini and I were in Whangarei, New…
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Our family business!
Madhava Mohini and I were in Whangarei, New Zealand, for a week.
One fine evening, I met a man outside a K Mart in the Okara car park. He was just getting out of his car with his teenage son. He was big and bald, with tattoos, so I asked whether he was a monk or if it was just the haircut?
He laughed. I started presenting the books, and he agreed with everything. Keen to help us out with a donation, the man, Jimmy, sent his son to the ATM.
While his son was withdrawing cash, Jimmy told me that he is interested in the Vedas. I was surprised and asked him how he got interested. He said that he hangs out with some interesting people.
I showed him a copy of Searching for Vedic India, and he said, “I already got that book from someone in this car park a year ago.”
So this time Jimmy got a Bhagavad-gita and Hiding in Unnatural Happiness (HUH).
A few days later, Madhava and I were in Kaitaia. The streets were hot, dusty and noisy, with five-year-old kids performing Michael Jackson songs to raise funds for their school trip to Wellington, folks chatting outside a bakery, and a meat sizzle down the road. Madhava told me that it reminded her of India (minus the sausage sizzle).
While distributing in a car park, Madhava met a nice lady from Keri Keri doing her grocery shopping.
Shocked, Madhava asked her if she comes all the way to Kaitaia just to shop. The lady laughed and said “No, I work here, too.”
While Madhava was presenting the books, the lady said that actually she had just started to read the first page of the book HUH last evening and had then fallen asleep, but that she wanted to finish it because she thought it was a good book.
Madhava asked where she’d gotten the book, and she said her husband had received the books from a girl in an Okara car park a few days ago. This lady also was enthusiastic to give Madhava a donation and received a Bhagavad-gita.
Madhava described this to me later as we were driving home, and we realized that her husband was the Jimmy I had met. Husband, wife and teenage son all got a chance to do devotional service and now have a solid collection of Prabhupada’s books from different links in the chain of our family business.
Our family business, ki jaya!

WSN October 2017 – World Sankirtan Newsletter
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Hare KrishnaBy Mayapur Sasi dasa

For the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada this report contains the following results of book distribution for the month of October 2017 from the whole planet. World Totals, Monthly Congregation and Weekend Warriors, Monthly Continents, Monthly Top Ten Temples by Size, Monthly Top Ten Temples by Continent, Monthly Top Teams and Individuals, Monthly All Countries, Monthly All Temples, Monthly All Prabhupada Disciples, Cumulative Top Ten Countries, Cumulative Top Ten Temples, Cumulative Top 50 Individuals Worldwide Continue reading "WSN October 2017 – World Sankirtan Newsletter
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Recordings: Australia, October 2017
→ KKSBlog

Please find below audio recordings of lectures and kirtans by Kadamba Kanana Swami during his visit to Australia in October 2017. Video recordings may be found on our Facebook page.

Download ALL (Zip file 2.3 GB)

Melbourne

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_20thOctober2017_HallProgram_Kirtan_GovardhanPuja_Adivas

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_20thOctober2017_HallProgram_Lecture_GovardhanPuja_Adivas

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_18thOctober2017_Lecture_SB_4.3.17

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_18thOctober2017_Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_18thOctober2017_ShortLecture

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_17thOctober2017_Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_17thOctober2017_Lecture

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_15thOctober2017_InitationCeremony_Lecture

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_15thOctober2017_InitationCeremony_Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_15thOctober2017_Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_15thOctober2017_Lecture

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_13thOctober2017_ Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Melbourne_13thOctober2017_Damodarastakam_and_Kirtan

 

Canberra

KKS_Australia_Canberra_13thOctober2017_Lecture_SB_4.27.30

KKS_Australia_Canberra_12thOctober2017_Lecture_SB_4.27.29

KKS_Australia_Canberra_11thOctober2017_Lecture_SB_4.27.28

KKS_Australia_Canberra_11thOctober2017_Intro_to_Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Canberra_11thOctober2017 _Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Canberra_10thOctober2017_Lecture_SB_4.27.27

KKS_Australia_Canberra_10thOctober2017_Evening_Lecture_BG_2.38

KKS_Australia_Canberra_10thOctober2017_Damodarastakam

KKS_Australia_Canberra_8thOctober2017_Damodarastakam

KKS_Australia_Canberra_8thOctober2017_Evening_Lecture_BG_6.38

KKS_Australia_Canberra_7thOctober2017_Lecture_SB_4.27.25

KKS_Australia_Canberra_7thOctober2017_Damodarastakam

KKS_Australia_Canberra_7thOctober2017_Intro_to_Kirtan

KKS_Australia_Canberra_7thOctober2017_Kirtan

 

Prabhupada Marathon Message
Giriraj Swami

 I am pleased to encourage you to participate in the Prabhupada book-distribution marathon. Srila Prabhupada explains, “Srila Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami had no fixed residence. They stayed beneath a tree for one day only and wrote huge volumes of transcendental literature. . . . It is certainly not good to write literature for money or reputation, but to write books and publish them for the enlightenment of the general populace is real service to the Lord. That was Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati’s opinion, and he specifically told his disciples to write books.” (Cc Madhya 19.132 purport)

This is parampara. Srila Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami and all the Gosvamis wrote books for the enlightenment of the general populace, and that instruction and practice came down through parampara to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, who wrote many books and instructed his disciples to write books. And Srila Prabhupada faithfully followed those instructions and also wrote many books. In fact, it is inconceivable that anyone could write so many books in such a short time.

Srila Prabhupada came to America in 1965, and from the very beginning in New York City he was selling his books. Years later, when devotees were doing research about Prabhupada’s life, they went to some bookstores where he had sold his books, and the shopkeepers remembered, “Oh yes, a very nice Indian gentleman came, and he would always give us samosas.” He would give them samosas when he went to sell them his books.

Prabhupada said that from the very beginning the basis of his movement was book distribution—the publication and distribution of books—and he showed that example.

In the same purport, Prabhupada explains further, “[T]he business of advanced and empowered devotees is to write books, publish them, and distribute them widely.”

Prabhupada wrote books, the BBT has published them, and now it is for us to distribute them. This is “the business of advanced and empowered devotees.” We are all already connected to Srila Prabhupada, and we all will benefit when we distribute his books. And if you persevere with sincerity and intelligence, you will also be advanced and empowered devotees.

Prabhupada states further, “According to Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, distributing literature is like playing on a great mrdanga.” He called the printing press the brhat-mrdanga, the great mrdanga, because an ordinary mrdanga can be heard for a few blocks whereas the brhat-mrdanga, the printing press, the books, can be heard all over the world.

I was the first ISKCON devotee to go to West Africa, Nigeria. I did hari-nama on the streets, and large crowds of people would gather round. Some well-dressed Africans started speaking about the Bhagavad-gita and the philosophy of Krishna consciousness, and I asked, “How do you know all these things? Did you ever meet devotees?” They replied, “No. But we have a friend who met devotees on the street in London, bought some books from them, and then shared them with us.” Even before any devotees had gone to West Africa, Prabhupada’s books had reached there and people were learning about Krishna consciousness.

Sometimes a whole yatra can begin just from books. Once, a tourist from Venezuela visited Israel, met devotees, and got some books from them. Back in Venezuela, he shared the books with his friends. They all started reading, became convinced of the philosophy, began to chant, and started practicing Krishna consciousness without having met any devotees. Eventually they developed a community of devotees and invited Srila Prabhupada, and he went—and it all began with the books.

The brhat-mrdanga can be heard all over the world.

Srila Prabhupada concludes his purport with a request to all of us: “Consequently we always request members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness to publish as many books as possible and distribute them widely throughout the world. By thus following in the footsteps of Srila Rupa Gosvami, one can become a rupanuga devotee.”

Rupa Gosvami is described as sri-caitanya-mano-’bhistam, sthapitam yena bhu-tale: he established on earth the mission to fulfill the desire of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. And that is done primarily through writing, publishing, and distributing books.

Srila Prabhupada said, “It’s like a train.” In a train, one car pushes—or pulls—the other, the other pushes another, and the other pushes still another. He said, “My guru maharaja is pushing me, and I am pushing all of you.”

Hare Krishna.

Your servant,
Giriraj Swami

In Shikshashtakam, what is the difference between ceto darpanam and sarvatma snapanam?
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Answer Podcast

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Why our moods keep changing – and what we can do about it
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[Sunday feast class at ISKCON, Perth, Australia]

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Let personal conception of God lead to personal dealings with God’s parts
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[Bhagavatam class on Srimad-Bhagavatam 03.28.20 at ISKCON, Perth, Australia]

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Is God an invention or a discovery?
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[Youth meeting at Hindu Samaj of Perth, Australia]

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Go beyond rationality and imagination to revelation for relishing Krishna’s lotus feet
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[Bhagavatam class on Srimad-Bhagavatam 03.28.21 at ISKCON, Perth, Australia]

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Wedding
→ Ramai Swami

Prahladananda Das and Vraja Kumari Devi Dasi decided to have their wedding at New Gokula, Millfield. Jayasri devi dasi and Pratapana das, the parents of the bride, organised it very nicely.

A special guest was Indradyumna Maharaja, Vraja’s guru, who gave a stirring speech after the yajna at the dinner table. The event went wonderfully and everyone, especially the bride and groom, was very happy.

ISKCON Scarborough – Gita Jayanti – The appearance day celebration of Srimad Bhagavad Gita- Wednesday – November 29th 2017
→ ISKCON Scarborough

Hare Krishna!
Please accept our humble obeisances!
All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga!


We have two very auspicious events happening on the same day coming Wednesday – November 29th, 2017.

- Advent of Srimad Bhagavad-Gita (Gita Jayanti)
- Moksada Ekadasi

One of the Vrata(vow) undertaken during Ekadasi is to read the Holy scriptures.
What can be more glorious on this Moksada Ekadasi than reading Bhagavad Gita on the very day that marks the 5154th appearance day anniversary.

We at ISKCON Scarborough will be celebrating Gita Jayanti in a grand manner on Wednesday 29th Nov, 2017 by reading all the 700 English verses starting at 6.30 PM sharp!

Advent of Srimad Bhagavad-Gita(Gita Jayanti)
It was on this day 5154 years ago, that Sanjaya narrated to King Dhritarashtra the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna in the battlefield of Kurukshetra at the place now known as Jyotisha tirtha, and thus made the glorious teachings of the Lord available to the people of the world, for all time.

Srimad Bhagavad-Gita shows a way to rise above the world of duality and the pairs of opposites, and to acquire eternal bliss and immortality. It is a gospel of action. It teaches the rigid performance of one's duty in society, and a life of active struggle, keeping the inner being untouched by outer surroundings, and renouncing the fruits of actions as offerings unto the Lord.

Srimad Bhagavad-Gita is a source of power and wisdom. It strengthens us when you are weak, and inspires us when you feel dejected and feeble. It teaches us how to resist unrighteousness and follow the path of virtue and righteousness.

The teachings of the Gita are broad, sublime and universal. They do not belong to any sect, creed, age, place or country. They are meant for all. They are within the reach of all. The Gita has a message for the solace, peace, freedom, salvation and perfection of all human beings.
Anyone who gifts a Bhagavad-Gita to a deserving person on this day is bestowed profuse blessings by Lord Krsna

There will be a grand Ekadasi feast served after the whole recitation.

On the auspicious occasion, we welcome you, your family and friends to join us at ISKCON Scarborough to recite the entire Gita verses and to partake the unlimited blessing of Sri Sri Radha Gopi Vallabha

ISKCON Scarborough
3500 McNicoll Avenue, Unit #3,
Scarborough,Ontario,
Canada,M1V4C7

Email Address:
iskconscarborough@hotmail.com
website:
www.iskconscarborough.com

Latest TOVP updates
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Hare Krishna Included are several new articles. Three are from the current TOVP Tour in Australasia and the other two are general updates, but particularly the new video update produced by Prananatha prabhu is very inspiring. Things just keep getting more ecstatic and we can't stop writing.

TOVP Australasia Tour, Day 6 – Brisban, Australia
- TOVP.org

On the 21st of November we arrived in Brisbane, Australia from New Govardhana and immediately began preparing for the evening TOVP event. Lord Nityananda’s Padukas and Lord Nrsimhadeva’s Sitari were nicely displayed in the temple and, as usual, we had an arati and abhisheka for Them accompanied by ecstatic kirtan.

Over 250 devotees attended the program and sat in rapt attention as Jananivas, Ambarisa, Svaha and Vraja Vilas prabhus talked about the TOVP and the importance of the project for the future of ISKCON and the mission of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. By the Lord’s mercy the total pledges came to $350,000.

We would like to thank the Temple President Jaya Vijay prabhu and his wife Varshana Radhe devi dasi for their dedication and support in making this event a grand success.

To make a donation and sponsor an abhisheka for Sri Sri Radha Madhava’s and/or Lord Nrsimhadeva’s Chakra during the installation ceremony on February 7th, please go here: https://tovp.org/donate/once-in-a-lifetime-chakra-abhisheka-seva-opportunity/

The post TOVP Australasia Tour, Day 6 – Brisban, Australia appeared first on Temple of the Vedic Planetarium.

Fulfilling Srila Prabhupada’s desires. Kadamba Kanana Swami:…
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Fulfilling Srila Prabhupada’s desires.
Kadamba Kanana Swami: Srila Prabhupada emphasized book distribution and that emphasis will never go away no matter what we do! There was a time when book distribution was THE EMPHASIS of the Hare Krsna movement and there was only a small percentage of devotees who were not part of it. But as time went on, book distribution at one point become a peripheral program – a side program and it lessened as a mainstream focus.
Now in recent years, we see a resurgence of book distribution worldwide, as statistics shows. So as they say, the pendulum swings – it swings from one side to the other BUT Srila Prabhupada’s desires remain valid. Whether our community takes different forms at different historical points in time, Prabhupada’s desires remain as an exceptional source of blessings! We can get such blessings by simply trying to fulfill Srila Prabhupada’s desires!
Therefore, again and again, that will come to the forefront, even if at times the focus shifts a little, still it remains within the boundaries of authorized Vaisnava behavior. If we miss the emphasis which Srila Prabhupada gave or the points that he stressed then we will dry up a little bit. So, therefore, our connection with Srila Prabhupada is extremely important and it must remain a focal point of our movement then our movement will flourish!

Sri Mayapur International School
→ Mayapur.com

In the midst of the lush, green Grihasta Para housing area of ISKCON Mayapur the Sri Mayapur International School is situated. The school campus features an idyllic combination of brick buildings, pathways, and tree-filled grounds, and those living nearby can often hear the children at play, performing kirtan, or practicing mridanga. The Sri Mayapur International […]

The post Sri Mayapur International School appeared first on Mayapur.com.

TOVP: More containers from Russia deliver the huge Chakras…
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TOVP: More containers from Russia deliver the huge Chakras (Album with photos)
Sadbhuja Das: The November containers from Russia have arrived with the stars, ribbons, and the Nrshimha Dev Chakra.
The Chakra it self is not completed yet, a lot of the welding, cleaning, re-polishing needs to be done and the Nava Yogendras have to be placed around before applying the gold.
We are very pleased with the Chakra and the stars, no alteration has to be made.
This is working out very good, we will update you in early December.
The main mode Chakra will also come, in many pieces because of it’s 7.5 M in diameter.
We all waiting and looking forward to seeing that as well.
Find them here: https://goo.gl/gbHcKM

“Trashformations” Student Recycled Art Competition…
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“Trashformations” Student Recycled Art Competition Winners.
Congratulations to Students from BANA and ALA!
Congratulations to the winners of the 19th Annual “Trashformations” Student Art Competition held by the Florida Museum of Natural History! Each project had to be made principally out of recycled items. This was a countywide event in which students from both Bhaktivedanta Academy (BANA) and Alachua Learning Academy (ALA) won prizes. First prize in Middle School division, as well as the Directors Choice award, was given to Karuna Leslie and Champakalata Camacho (BANA). Second Prize in Middle School division was given the 3 students from ALA supervised by art teacher Nilacala Kreitzer. And Third Prize in Middle School division was given to Arora Vrindavan and Kalyani Mwanyalo (BANA). The BANA students were supervised by BANA art teacher Nandapriya Sikdar.

Prison Outreach Preaching from ISKCON Alachua
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Hare KrishnaBy Saranga Thakur das

200 inmates on death row will get to see the movie “Hare Krishna! the mantra, the movement and the Swami that started it all”. At first the Chaplain seemed reluctant to allow us to show the movie, but with a letter from Yadubara and the years of goodwill we’ve developed, he agreed. His staff have offered advertising and technical help including spreading our posters around to all the buildings and even allowing the movie to be shown to the 200 guys on death row. And excitement is building around the showing of the movie. One of the students was concerned that the posters aren’t up yet so he made some of his own, just to make sure it was sufficiently advertised. Continue reading "Prison Outreach Preaching from ISKCON Alachua
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In Damodarashtakam, what does not wanting any benediction other than Vaikuntha refer to?
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Answer Podcast

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Early rising for quality chanting
→ KKSBlog

(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 2005, Durban, South Africa, Lecture)

We must chant our sixteen rounds early in the morning and not spread it throughout the day. This is the spirit! There is a big difference when we chant in the morning because throughout the day when we try to chant then we are distracted and interrupted, “Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna… (the phone rings) Yes, I see. Okay, I will call back later! Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna…” And like that, throughout the day we can get caught up in 101 things while chanting our rounds and it can get very difficult!

When chanting, we need to get into a mood of meditation where it is just Krsna and everything else we forget about. For once, let us focus on our eternal relationship with the Supreme Lord. Early mornings are very valuable, very important for that and in the science of devotional service, we know that if we do not rise early in the morning then it will be difficult – our spiritual life may suffer and the real quality will not be there…

Understanding how our mind makes us misunderstand 4 – QA
→ The Spiritual Scientist

[Retreat on Instincts, Impulses, Intelligence at Melbourne, Australia]

Podcast

The post Understanding how our mind makes us misunderstand 4 – QA appeared first on The Spiritual Scientist.

Understanding how our mind makes us misunderstand 3 – Misunderstanding Krishna
→ The Spiritual Scientist

[Retreat on Instincts, Impulses, Intelligence at Melbourne, Australia]

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Understanding how our mind makes us misunderstand 2 – Misunderstanding ourselves
→ The Spiritual Scientist

[Retreat on Instincts, Impulses, Intelligence at Melbourne, Australia]

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Understanding how our mind makes us misunderstand 1 – Misunderstanding ourselves
→ The Spiritual Scientist

[Retreat on Instincts, Impulses, Intelligence at Melbourne, Australia]

Podcast

 
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Analyzing yoga and bhakti to keep practice in harmony with purpose
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[Bhagavatam class at ISKCON, Perth, Australia]

Podcast

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Science, Spirituality and Self-empowerment
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[Seminar for docors at Perth, Australia]

Podcast


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Facing our fears – FEAR acronym
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[Hall program at Perth, Australia]

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What makes relationships spiritual and sustainable – Marriage reception talk
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[Talk at ISKCON, Melbourne, Perth]

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